In Vivo

As with all of our in vivo services, we guarantee continued communication during on-going studies and will contact you directly with any questions or concerns. This guarantees that any data collected is both biologically and clinically reliable and relevant. Further, any valued data that appears to warrant a change in protocol can be discussed, giving the client the flexibility to modify their existing protocols.

Species

Rats and Mice

Means of Administration

Oral

Subcutaneous

Intraperitoneal

Intramuscular

Intravenous

Topical

Slow-Infusion

Types of Studies Performed

Maximum Tolerated Dose (MTD)

Singe-Dose (Acute)

Chronic Toxicity

Irritation and Sensitization

Screening for Compound-Related Cardiotoxic Effects

An important part of the preclinical safety profiling of a pharmacological agent involves screening for cardiotoxic effects. Many toxic drug effects are manifested in changes to the rhythm of the heart, these include: slowing (bradycardia) or quickening (tachycardia) of the heart rate, heart rate variability and/or alterations in the length of the intervals within the sinus rhythm. These changes are reflected in electrocardiogram (ECG) traces. Used in conjunction with clinical observations, an ECG can detect potentially fatal drug-induced cardiac arrhythmias. One example is torsades de pointes, a potentially fatal polymorphic ventricular tachycardia that can be triggered or exacerbated by pharmacological agents.

Cardiotoxicity can be a direct or an indirect effect of a novel compound, or it can be the result of drug-drug and/or drug-genotype interaction. A common example of a drug-genotype (pharmacogenetic) interaction is the occurrence of torsades de pointes in individuals with inherited Long-QT syndrome following the administration of certain pharmacological agents that extend the QT interval. Detecting drug-genotype interactions on cardiac functioning is important because cardiotoxic drug effects, including those that involve the elongation of the QT interval, are some of the most common reasons for the withdrawal of a drug from the market, yet may exist only in a susceptible percentage of the population small enough to be overlooked in a study the size of a standard clinical trial. Screening novel drugs preclinically in animals with known genetic susceptibility to specific cardiac conditions may help detect cardiotoxic effects of novel drugs in the early phases of drug development before they enter expensive clinical trials. Scientists at MuriGenics can help you choose a strain that is appropriate for the screening of drug-genotype interactive cardiotoxicity.

ECGenie: Non-invasive Electrocardiogram (ECG) for Small Animals

MuriGenics offers non-invasive electrocardiogram (ECG) screening through the use of the ECGenie instrument. The ECGenie measures ECGs from the paws of conscious small animals using a footplate equipped with electrodes positioned for maximum contact. Data can be acquired efficiently in conscious un-restrained rodents with this platform. Read more about the ECGenie and also view sample data.

Toxicity Blood Panel

We also offer a blood panel for measuring serum parameters of drug toxicity. These include:

Our team has over fifty years of experience with efficacy studies in all of the major therapeutic areas including: Autoimmune Disorders, Cardiovascular, CNS, Infectious Disease, Inflammation, Metabolic Disease and Oncology. We use the most validated and reliable models for testing your compounds and our years of experience can help guide your decision regarding the best... Read more »

Determining the pharmacokinetics (PK) of novel test compounds is essential for approximating efficacy during the drug development and discovery phases. At MuriGenics, we provide a wide-range of murine pharmacokinetic, bioavailability and biodistribution services that can be customized to meet the needs of our clients. In order to screen for possible gene-compound interactions, MuriGenics provides preclinical... Read more »

MuriGenics specializes in rodent preclinical non-GLP toxicology studies, directed toward preliminary screening and safety profiling of test articles. As with all of our In Vivo services, we guarantee continued communication during on-going studies and will contact you directly with any questions or concerns. This guarantees that any data collected is both biologically and clinically reliable... Read more »

Bioluminescent Imaging Bioluminescent Imaging : Bioluminescence refers to the process of visible light emission in living organisms. Bioluminescent imaging is a methodology that has been developed over the last several years as a tool for molecular imaging of small laboratory animals. This form of optical imaging is noninvasive and facilitates real-time analysis of disease... Read more »